The Intruder
by foxy11814
Summary: Clark, after deciding to stay in Smallville to attend college, finds a young boy in his barn obviously in need of protection. Circumstances surrounding this young boy eventually have Clark questioning not only the boy's honesty and integrity, but his own,
1. Default Chapter

Okay, so it's been a while since I posted anything. Sorry, I've been so busy with college. Anyway, this is a new story and I hope you enjoy it. I intend on updating it pretty regularly if you're interested.

Anyway, I do not own Smallville or any of its characters. Yadda, yadda, yadda...

The Intruder

He played this scenario in his head a million times; he knew it was going to work. The Kent family certainly had a soft spot for strays. There was no denying that or they wouldn't have adopted Clark.

Lionel sneered at the thought. "Adopted," he questioned aloud and shook his head menacingly. He paced Lex's office and continued to talk to himself. "Jonathan Kent saved Lex's life, so I owed him one, but why didn't I take the time to find out where the boy really came from? If I had, I wouldn't have all these questions I do today." His thoughts drifted back to that fateful day:

_He was sitting at his desk in his Metropolis office when the secretary beeped him on his speakerphone. He hit the button slightly annoyed. "What is it, Maxine," he questioned._

"_Sir, a Mr. Jonathan Kent is on the phone. He says he needs to speak with you."_

_Lionel rubbed his chin thoughtfully and smiled. "So, he's going to take me up on my offer after all," he said softly._

"_Sir," questioned Maxine._

_Lionel shook himself out of his reverie and said, "That's all, Maxine. I'll take the call." He immediately picked up the phone and cheerfully said, "Mr. Kent! What a pleasant surprise!"_

_Jonathan swallowed roughly at hearing Lionel's voice. He glanced at his wife who was playing with Clark. He took a quick breath and said, "Hi, Mr. Luthor. I'm sorry to be calling you and bothering you at work."_

_Lionel smiled because he could already tell Jonathan was setting the conversation up to ask him for that favor...finally. His smile grew sadistic: He would do a favor for Jonathan, and Jonathan would do one for him. That's how business worked, after all. "It's no bother at all," he assured him. "I'm actually glad to speak with you again. I don't think I can tell you enough how grateful I am to you. You saved my son's life."_

_Jonathan cleared his throat and replied, "I only did what anybody else would do in that situation. I'm just glad I was at the right place at the right time." With those words, he glanced at Clark and smiled. Those words certainly applied to him, too._

_Lionel's voice made him turn his intention back to their conversation. "Don't be modest, Mr. Kent. Your fast thinking saved his life. For once in my life, I was paralyzed by shock and fear. For once in my life, I trusted someone else to make decisions for me. I'm glad it was you." As soon as he said the words, he grinned. He had to gain the trust of this farmer if he was ever going to learn what Jonathan wanted. It was essential to him so he could also get what he wanted. Jonathan Kent was, after all, friends with the Ross family. They would trust him as he had that fateful day. They would have the confidence that he wouldn't steer them down the wrong path, and they would sell him the Cream Corn Factory._

_Jonathan shrugged off the flattery and asked, "How is your son?"_

"_Oh, he's doing much better. He's still a little upset that he lost his hair, but he'll pull through. It's a challenge…it'll be a good lesson for him."_

_Jonathan nodded even though Lionel couldn't see him. "Uh, yeah. Besides, his hair will grow back, right?"_

"_I'm afraid not. It wasn't pulled or burned off, Mr. Kent. He was so terrified that day that his hair fell out, and the doctors don't see it ever re-growing."_

"_I'm sorry to hear that," Jonathan said, genuinely feeling sorry for the boy._

_There was a slight pause in the conversation. Obviously Jonathan didn't know what to say next, so Lionel took the opportunity to persuade him. "So, Mr. Kent, I loved having this conversation with you. It's always good to hear from a friend. If that's all you wanted to talk about, I need to get back to my work. I promise to keep you informed on how Lex is doing." He almost crossed his fingers and hoped his plan would work._

_Jonathan was so tempted to hang up. He knew doing business with the proverbial devil would come back to haunt them, but he needed this favor. If he didn't somehow come up with adoption papers for Clark, one day people would show up on his farm to take his son away. He couldn't allow that to happen. He looked at his son and almost whispered, "Actually, Mr. Luthor, I was wondering if you were serious when you told me to call you if I needed anything."_

_Lionel stood up, delighted that the farmer finally got around to the point of this phone call. "Yes, Mr. Kent. I told you that at the hospital. I mean it. Why? Is there something I can do for you?"_

_Never taking his eyes off of Clark, Jonathan answered, "Yes, I need to ask a huge favor of you, but before I ask, you have to promise me you will not tell a soul…even if you don't agree to help me."_

_This intrigued Lionel greatly. "This sounds big but what could this farmer possibly want that would call for so much secrecy," he thought. Finally, he said, "You have my word."_

_Jonathan took a deep calming breath and said, "I don't really want to talk about this over the phone. Perhaps, I could meet you…"_

_Lionel abruptly stopped Jonathan's words and said, "How about I drop by your house tomorrow afternoon? I'm heading over to the Ross' factory tomorrow, anyway."_

"_Yeah, that would be great," Jonathan said, thankful that so far everything was working out. Hopefully it would stay that way. Jonathan was preparing to end the conversation when Lionel once again stopped him with his words._

"_Can I ask you one thing, Mr. Kent?"_

"_Sure, what's that?"_

"_This favor…who or what does it concern?"_

"_My son," Jonathan answered honestly._

_Lionel's eyebrows immediately raised in surprise. So, this was going to be good after all. Why would Jonathan Kent need his help with an issue concerning his son? He smiled and said, "Then, I'll definitely see you tomorrow afternoon, Mr. Kent. Good-bye."_

_Each men hung up the phone and Lionel laughed. He looked over at his map of Smallville and stared at the Ross' factory. "It's as good as mine," he whispered._

Lionel's thoughts were brought back to the present by a young man snapping his fingers in front of his face.

"Yo, man, I don't have all day, so do I have the job or don't I?"

Lionel smiled and said, "You talk big for a young man who is only 13."

The boy nodded and said, "I have survived a lot of hard trials, Mr. Luthor. I may seem like an innocent little kid, but believe me, I'm far from it. Now, do I have the job or don't I?"

Lionel smiled and nodded. "You have the job."

Clark was sitting in his loft working on his first college paper for his English 1101 class. He heard someone walking up the steps and immediately recognized the footsteps as his father's. He paused his hand and waited for his father to address him.

Jonathan walked up the last few steps and knocked on railing beside him.

Clark immediately set his notebook and pencil down on the table in front of him. He turned to face his father and smiled. He could already tell his dad was up here to have a heart-to-heart. Why? He didn't know. There were so many things going on in his life recently that he could never tell nowadays. He just hoped it was a subject he would want to address. He watched as his father's eyes rested on the notebook he just set down.

"Working on homework," Jonathan questioned.

Clark nodded. "Yeah, my English professor wants us to write an essay arguing why or why not smoking should be allowed in public places. She wants to go over the whole 'argumentative essay' structure."

Jonathan nodded and said, "Well, that's good, isn't it?"

Clark stared at his dad and shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. It's just that this teacher gives us so much work. She hasn't given us back a single thing we've written yet. What if she hates my writing style and I find out when it's too late?"

Jonathan laughed. "I doubt seriously that would happen, Clark."

Clark frowned at him and said, "How do you know?"

Jonathan slipped an arm around his son's shoulders and said, "Because you're great at writing. Come on, you used to proofread Chloe's articles for the Torch all the time. If you weren't good at that stuff, I'm sure she wouldn't let you touch her work."

Clark rolled his eyes and said, "Writing and proofreading are two different things, Dad. Trust me."

"But you have to know one to do the other."

Clark finally smiled and said, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

They both sat there in silence for a couple of seconds until Jonathan looked directly into Clark's eyes and questioned, "Are you enjoying college, son? I mean, I know you initially wanted to get away from Smallville when you went to college, and I was just wondering how you feel about staying?"

Clark smiled at his dad. "I'm glad I stayed. I'll admit, even when I did have my heart set on leaving, I felt guilty about leaving you to work on the farm all by yourself."

"I have your mother."

Clark chuckled and said, "I know that, Dad. You know what I mean, though."

Jonathan thought about this for a few seconds and said, "So, the only reason you stayed was for the farm?"

Clark immediately shook his head. "No! I stayed because I wanted to stay close to my family and friends. Running away from my problems and the kryptonite won't solve anything in the long run. Besides, I'd like to think everyone needs me around here."

"And, we do," Jonathan said smiling. "But of course, you could always be here within five minutes no matter where you went to college, son."

"True, but I don't want to hide from people while I stop by to visit. If I'm supposed to be in California, how in the world would I explain my frequent appearances to people?"

"Who said your visits would be frequent?" Jonathan laughed as soon as he asked the question.

The smile that was on Clark's face immediately vanished. "Dad, I know in the past I've expressed my desire to go somewhere to get away from the kryptonite, but in doing that, I'd be leaving my home. I would be leaving you and Mom. I guess I'm not like other kids." As soon as he said those last words, he laughed softly. "Well, aside from the obvious reasons why I'm not like them, I'm different because I don't want to leave you guys. Most kids want to get away from their parents after graduating high school, but I'm just not ready to do that yet."

Jonathan immediately brought his arms around Clark and embraced him as tightly as he could. Clark hugged him back and felt such love and warmth pass between them. When Jonathan finally pulled back, he looked into his son's eyes and said, "I'm glad you decided to stay, and so is your mother. The night you told us you wanted to go to college in California, she went to our room and cried her eyes out."

Clark almost looked guilty for a second but then Jonathan continued, "But don't let that effect you, son. If you built a house next door and moved into it, she'd still cry. It's a mother thing."

Clark immediately nodded and laughed a little.

Jonathan stood up and smiled at his son. "Your mother probably has dinner ready by now. Let's go."

Clark nodded, stood up, and grabbed his notebook. He followed his father down the steps, and as soon as they reached the ground, Clark heard something. It almost sounded like someone or something whimpering. He grabbed his father's shoulder.

Jonathan turned around and saw Clark with an expression of complete concentration. "What is it," he questioned.

Clark listened and then shook his head. "I don't know. I thought I heard something, but maybe it was nothing."

They both took a step forward and this time they both heard the noise. Jonathan looked at his son and mouthed, "X-ray."

Clark immediately used his x-ray vision to look around the barn. Just as he was about to give up, he saw a small figure laying behind a pile of hay. Clark immediately walked over there and said, "Who are you?"

A young boy looked up at him and said, "Please, you have to help me," before he passed out.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the replies. I'm glad some of you find this interesting. Hopefully, you will continue to think so.

Chapter 2

"Why do I feel like we've done this before," Clark asked as he stood outside an examining room watching as a doctor examined the boy they had brought in.

Jonathan stood beside him and didn't say anything. He knew Clark's thoughts had drifted to Ryan, and the truth was that he had been thinking the same thing. He patted Clark on the back as the doctor came out and approached them.

"How is he," Clark asked as soon as the doctor stopped to stand in front of them.

The doctor glanced through the glass and responded, "He's okay. He's a little banged up and tired, but it's nothing a little R and R won't fix."

Jonathan was instantly glad to hear that the boy would be okay. Now that he knew it was nothing serious, it was time to get down to business. "Okay, doctor, did you happen to find out what his name is, or how he ended up in our barn? He was unconscious the entire time we drove here, so we weren't able to ask."

The doctor hesitated for a second and said, "His name is David, but that's all he would tell me. He told me he didn't have any parents to call, so I called Social Services. They should be here shortly to take him somewhere until they can figure out what to do with him."

Jonathan's eyes immediately went to Martha's because he already knew what she wanted to do. He learned from past experience, after all. He saw the look in hers, turned back to the doctor, and said, "When they arrive, tell them that we would like to take him until they figure something out."

The doctor smiled knowingly and said, "I had a feeling one of you were going to say that."

As the doctor walked off, Martha said, "Yeah, and I'm surprised it wasn't me."

Jonathan shrugged and said, "So, I guess I have a soft spot for strays, too."

"There's no guessing to it, Jonathan," she responded with a small laugh. "You always have."

Clark listened to his parents and couldn't help but smile, but then he grew serious. "As much as I appreciate you taking me in, I don't think I like to be referred to as a 'stray.'"

Martha and Jonathan exchanged worried looks quickly. "Son," Jonathan began.

Clark instantly laughed and said, "I'm just kidding."

They all laughed and turned back to look at the little boy. Yep, they were definitely experiencing déjà vu.

David walked around the Kent living room and said, "I really appreciate you letting me stay here."

Clark smiled and said, "Don't mention it, buddy. Just sit down and make yourself comfortable."

Martha walked in the room and said, "David, do you want anything to eat or drink?"

"No, thank you, Mrs. Kent," David replied. "I'm actually just a little tired."

"Of course," Martha said and went to go get some blankets and a pillow from the closet in her bedroom.

David looked around the room again as he sat down and said, "You have a nice family, Clark. And, this is a really nice house."

Clark nodded and said, "Yep, I think so, too." He sat down beside him and wondered if he should bring up what happened in the barn. He didn't want to upset the boy but he already felt the need to protect David from whatever he was running from. Maybe the need was so intense because he was already associating him with Ryan. He had let Ryan down and he was not going to make the same mistake twice. He was determined to help David. He looked down at his hands which where resting in his lap and said, "So…"

"So…" the boy echoed.

Clark sighed and said, "I want to talk to you about earlier."

David looked almost terrified for a brief moment but then covered it up with a blank expression. "What about earlier," he asked coolly.

Clark turned his body slightly to face him and said, "In the barn, you asked me to help you. What's going on? Why are you refusing to tell anyone your last name? Who are you running from?"

The only reaction Clark received was silence. He watched as David turned away from him and stared at the wall. Clark touched his shoulder and said, "Hey, you can trust me, David. I promise I won't tell the authorities or even my parents, if you don't want me to. I want to help you."

David turned back to him and unshed tears were glistening his eyes. "I know you want to help me, but I don't think you can."

Clark squeezed his shoulder and said, "Just let me try. Besides, it'll be good to get it off your chest."

David took a deep breath and stood up. "I'm running from a man named Lionel Luthor. Perhaps you've heard of him."

Clark also stood up and stared at the boy clearly shocked. "Yeah, I've heard of him. Why he is after you?"

"I don't know," he cried frantically. "I used to think of Mr. Luthor as my sole benefactor. He took care of me. He paid for me to go to private schools. He made sure I had a great foster family, but one day, all that changed. He stopped by the house one day to talk to my foster parents. I don't know about what, but all of a sudden, I heard my mom screaming. Lionel rushed into the room and tried to grab me. I ran as fast as I could, Clark. I hid out in an abandoned warehouse for a couple of days. When I went home, my foster parents were gone. There was no note or any indication where they went. Since then I've been avoiding Lionel and his men. When I snuck into your barn, I was being chased by some of his people. I know eventually they're going to find me here. That's why I need to keep moving. I've got to stay a few steps ahead of him."

Clark's mind was racing from the information he just received. What did Lionel want with this boy, but more importantly, why was Lionel his benefactor? He looked at him carefully and didn't see any resemblance between him, Lionel, and Lex. "Appearances can be deceiving, though," he thought to himself. He once again squeezed David's shoulder. "You can't keep running," Clark said, slowly. That was the one thing he was sure of. "No matter where you run, Lionel will eventually find you. It's better to just stop and face him."

"But how?" David looked so terrified that Clark couldn't help his next words.

"Look, David, I've been up against Lionel more times than I cared to. I know how intimidating he can be, but you can't let him get to you. Take it from personal experience, Lionel can be beaten. He doesn't always get what he wants, and I promise you this will be another one of those occasions. He won't get you, not as long as I'm around."

David stared up into Clark's eyes and said, "How can you be so sure?"

Clark smiled and said, "Just trust me. Nothing is going to happen to you. What we need to worry about right now is finding out why Lionel wants you and what exactly happened to your foster parents."

"Oh, I know what happened to them," David said, sorrowfully.

"What?" Clark almost feared the answer.

"Lionel either frightened them away or he paid them to leave. I'll never see them again. I'm completely alone."

Clark sighed and remembered the days when he used to feel that way. It wasn't a pleasant feeling. He wrapped his arm around David's shoulders and said, "You're not alone. I'm here for you, and so are my parents. We will all get through this together. You'll see."

David smiled and looked up as Martha and Jonathan walked into the room.

They were eavesdropping from down the hall. They walked in carrying everything they needed to turn the couch into a makeshift bed. "Clark's right, David," Jonathan said, confidently. "You're not alone, and we will make sure Lionel doesn't get his hands on you one way or another. You're safe here."

David immediately smiled and nodded.

Lex had never seen his father so…chipper before. Lionel had grinned at him as soon as he had walked into the room and now he was staring out the window with the biggest smile he had seen on him in years. "Why are you so happy," he couldn't help but ask.

Lionel turned to his son and asked, "Don't you just love it when a plan starts to come together?"

Lex rubbed his chin and stared at the papers on his desk. "This wouldn't have anything to do with a meeting you had with a David Shandler, would it?"

Lionel's smiled immediately faded. "What do you know about him?"

"I know that he had a meeting with you," Lex said, getting up from the seat behind his desk. "I know you have been paying foster parents to take care of him and that he is currently on the Kent farm." Lex walked to his father and whispered, "What are you up to now, Dad?"

Lionel laughed and stared at Lex. "You make me proud, son. You knew more than I thought you did."

Lex was almost amused at his father's statement. "So, I'm finally making you proud after all these years? I don't know if that's necessarily true, though. Sometimes I think I frighten you because I'm now staying two steps ahead of the game."

"Obviously you're not, son, if you don't know why Mr. Shandler is at the Kent's." Lionel smirked and went to pour himself a brandy.

"Let me guess," Lex said following him. "You're using David to find out more information on the Kents, and especially Clark. It's pretty good plan, Dad, but there's just one problem: Clark won't let his guard down, not even for that young boy. Sooner or later, David is going to slip up and show him exactly what kind of person he is and then it's all going to be over."

"I doubt that seriously, son," Lionel said with a smile. "David has a way of getting things done, you'll see. Then both of us will have the answers we want to our biggest mystery: Clark Kent." He paused and said, "And, even if David doesn't find out any information on Clark, he'll certainly make things…interesting for the Kents."

A shiver ran up Lex's spine. "He has another agenda, doesn't he? He's not only there to get information on Clark."

Lionel smiled and said, "You see, son, you still have a lot to learn. When someone is in opposition to you, Lex, the best course of action is to break his or her spirit. Take everything away piece by piece, and where better to start than the home?"

Lex swallowed roughly and said, "Dad, Clark and I may have our disagreements, but I still consider him my friend…"

"He isn't your friend, Lex," Lionel said roughly. "We are Luthors. We can't afford to have friends; we can only afford to have each other. That's all we need, son. Clark is our opposition. He is the key to everything you and I have been searching for these past few years. The boy has ruined more of my plans than I care to admit, and I'm sure you can say the same thing, son. I think it's time we did something about it. It's time to make sure it doesn't happen again…it's time we found out the truth. Where did he come from? What are the Kents hiding?"

Lex sat down in his chair and stared at his father who looked like he was deep in thought:

"_Mr. Kent," Lionel said with a smile as he stepped out of his limo. _

_Jonathan immediately shut off the wood-chipper and took off his gloves. He extended his hand to Lionel, and they shook hands. "It's good to see you, Mr. Luthor."_

"_Yes, yes, it's good to see you, too."_

_They stood there for several seconds and Jonathan's eyes drifted towards his house. Martha was on the porch sweeping it, and Clark was sitting down on the dirt in front of the steps. He was playing with one of Jonathan's old airplanes from when he was a kid._

_Lionel followed Jonathan's gaze and saw Clark. He smiled and said, "I must admit, Mr. Kent, that I was shocked when you called yesterday and told me you needed a favor concerning your son. Is everything okay with him? Is there something medically wrong with him?"_

"_Oh, no," Jonathan said quickly, nervously scratching the back of his head. He took a deep breath and sighed. He looked back towards Martha and their eyes met. She looked like she was almost pleading with him to do this. He swallowed roughly and decided to get this over with as quickly as possible."The truth is that I need your help to make sure no one takes my son away from me."_

_Lionel widened his eyes slightly and looked back at the little boy. "Why in the world would anyone take him away from you, Mr. Kent? He looks happy enough."_

_Jonathan knew what he had to say next. He could only hope he wouldn't regret it. "They would take him because he isn't really my son."_

_Lionel turned abruptly back to Jonathan as he continued to speak. "The truth is that I found Clark on the day of the meteor shower." He paused with his story and looked into the man's eyes feeling like he was also pleading. "Nobody is searching for him, so I'm assuming somehow his parents were killed." He looked back at Martha and couldn't believe he was about to say this, but it had to be done. "Mr. Luthor, we want to raise Clark. We want to raise him as our son, but we can't do that…legally. We might lose him in the system. They might think we don't earn enough money or think that someone can raise him better. I know it sounds selfish, but my wife and I love this little boy, and if you could somehow help us, we'd be forever grateful."_

_Lionel smiled and said, "So, you just found the boy on that highway?"_

"_Yes, sir," Jonathan said nervously._

_Lionel looked at him for a second, sensing that Jonathan was hiding something from him, but he didn't care. Now that Jonathan had asked such a huge favor of him, he knew the farmer would have no choice but to help him convince the Rosses to sell their factory. He smiled and said, "What you need is adoption papers."_

_Jonathan nodded, unable to speak any longer._

"_Consider it done," Lionel said. He shook Mr. Kent's hand and started to walk away._

_Jonathan's jaw dropped. He was astonished that Lionel didn't have any hesitation or more questions. Something didn't sit right, but he was grateful anyway. "Thank you, Mr. Luthor," he called out._

_Lionel turned back and said, "You saved Lex's life, Mr. Kent. The least I can do is help you keep your son in your life, as well." As soon as he got into the limo and shut the door, he laughed. He loved it when people played right into his hands._

"I should have asked more questions," Lionel said aloud.

Lex raised an eyebrow and said, "What?"

Lionel shook his head. "Nothing," he said. He walked in front of Lex's desk and said, "You know you want to know more about Clark, just as much as I do. We'll get our answers, son, even if we have to force them from Clark."

Lionel left the office and Lex went back to staring at his papers.


End file.
